Elly Conway
Eleanor Leanna Rose "Elly" Conway made her first screen appearance on 13 December 2001.33 The character was initially played by Kendell Nunn, and Neighbours marked Nunn's first television role.33 The show's producer Peter Dodds told Wendy Granditer of Inside Soap that Elly would be introduced as the "rebellious niece" of Susan Kennedy (Jackie Woodburne).34 Of her arrival, he said "Elly arrives just in time to see her cousin, Libby Kirk, go into labour under typically trying circumstances."34 Nunn thought Elly was "a great character" and said she had lots of attitude, which would get her on the wrong side of certain people.33 A writer for Neighbours.com added that Susan and Karl (Alan Fletcher) would have their work cut out for them trying to keep Elly out of trouble, adding that she was "smart, insightful and just a touch rebellious".33 In early 2002, Elly decides to meet her estranged father.35 Karl decided to get in touch with Ian Conway (Peter Maver) because he felt that meeting her father would settle her down. However, Elly found out and called Ian herself to set up a meeting.35 When Ian arrived he insisted on time alone with Elly. Nunn explained "Once Karl and Susan have left the room, Ian tells Elly that he's not her dad but he knows who is. Then he comes out with it – her real dad is Karl! Ian says that Karl and her mum, Liz, had an affair years ago and Elly is the result!"35 Elly was horrified by the news, but as she thought about it, it started to make sense. Nunn told an Inside Soap writer that as Elly and Karl did not get along, there was a part of her that did not want it to be true. But she wanted a family, so there was a part of her that hoped she belonged to Karl.35 When Elly looked into Karl's background and found out he had an affair, things started to fall into place for her. However, it was later revealed that Ian really was Elly's father.35 A writer for the BBC said Elly's most notable moment was "Asking Karl if he was her real father."36 Kylie Miller of The Age branded Elly a "likeable delinquent."37 Michael Idato of The Sydney Morning Herald criticised Nunn's acting ability and her debut performance on Neighbours, saying "Every now and again an actor comes along who delivers her lines with such appalling imprecision that you are rendered speechless by the performance. It's the same state of disbelief brought about by outstanding performances, but it differs mainly in that it is combined with a knitting of the eyebrows and an urge to summon other people to the TV set to share in the dreadfulness of the moment. In this case, the actor's name is Kendell Nunn and the production presumably was running so far behind they had neither the time to (a) rehearse nor (b) do a second take. On the Richter scale of drama debuts, she ranks about an 0.2."38 Idato went on to say that her arrival is underwhelming and Elly is a "hybrid of the brazen-hussy-troublemaker and dumped-by-a-disinterested-mum character types that seem to reproduce like rabbits on soaps."38 Roz Laws, writing for the Sunday Mercury, dubbed Elly a "troublesome teen".39 On 28 April 2016, Jonathon Moran of The Daily Telegraph reported that the character would be returning to the show with actress Jodi Anasta in the role.40 Anasta splits her time between Melbourne, where the show is filmed, and Sydney, where her family is based. She initially signed a three-year contract and made her first appearance as Elly on 18 July 2016.4041 Anasta told Moran that she was "thrilled" to be working and said that her "biggest hurdle" was learning all of her scripts.40 Elly is now a school teacher, like her aunt Susan, and Anasta described her as "fun, feisty" and unpredictable.40 She added, "she is an English teacher, which is amazing because I get to play out one of my childhood dreams of being a teacher and I get to have fun and be a little bit naughty. She is a little bit wild and has an unconventional way of teaching so all these great layers of naughtiness but with a heart of gold."40 Elly's first scenes saw her return amid the Erinsborough High formal and clash with Piper Willis (Mavournee Hazel) over Tyler Brennan (Travis Burns).41 Storylines Elly became a rebellious teenager after her mother neglected her and she was expelled from her boarding school for smoking cannabis. Her mother Liz (Christine Keogh) comes to Erinsborough to see her sister, Susan, and she asks her to take care of Elly, as she is going to Sweden for six months. A week later, Susan receives a call telling her that Elly is on her way. Elly arrives in Ramsay Street, accompanied by the police, shocking Susan. Elly forms a bond with her cousin Darcy (Mark Raffety), but she struggles to get along with Karl. Susan faces a dilemma when she realises Elly thinks she is staying for a couple of weeks, instead of six months. Darcy decides to tell her the truth, but Elly does not believe him and she is devastated when her friend Michelle Scully (Kate Keltie) confirms the news. Elly believes that she is getting a ticket to Stockholm, when her mother tells her to expect something in the post. However, she is disappointed when she receives a credit card. Elly then books herself on a flight to see her mother, but Susan manages to stop her from leaving. Elly forms a close relationship with Michelle, although they get off to a bad start when Michelle accuses Elly of cheating with her boyfriend, Zack Shaw (Owen Lee). Zack starts spreading rumours about Michelle and she teams up with Elly to get back at him. They write rumors about him on the blackboard and they are caught by Susan. Elly sticks up for Michelle, straining her relationship with Susan and Karl in the process. Elly tells them that she is going to move out when she turns sixteen, but after listening to Lyn Scully (Janet Andrewartha) talk about family, she changes her mind. Elly saves Darcy from the sudden effects of a heart problem, by giving him CPR. Elly is hailed a hero and she is given some work experience at the surgery. Elly briefly dates Tad Reeves (Jonathon Dutton). Karl and Susan decide to find out who Elly's father is, so they can give her some stability. Elly finds out and she helps track down Ian Conway, who she believes is her father. Ian shocks Elly when he tells her that he had been informed Karl was her father. Elly asks Libby (Kym Valentine) if her father had ever had an affair and Libby admits that he did. Elly confronts Karl, but he tells her that he never had an affair with Liz. Elly tells him that she is disappointed. Liz returns and reveals she is pregnant. Elly asks her who her father is and Liz admits that it is Ian and that she had lied to him. Elly is devastated by her mother's neglect, especially when Liz forgets her birthday. When Liz asks Elly to come to Sweden with her, Elly is unsure, but decides to give her mother a second chance. She and Liz then leave for Sweden. Years later, Elly returns to Erinsborough amid the high school formal. She flirts with Mark (Scott McGregor) and Tyler Brennan. When Piper Willis sees Elly with Tyler, she becomes jealous and throws a drink over her. Piper is later forced to apologise to Elly, who is revealed to be her new English teacher. Piper continues to be hostile towards Elly and later upsets her, causing Elly to almost hit Stephanie Scully (Carla Bonner) and her son Charlie (Alexander McGuire) with her car. Mark is lenient towards her and Steph briefly becomes jealous of their friendship. Elly rescues Nell Rebecchi (Scarlett Anderson) from a brown snake, but is bitten herself. Karl informs Elly that she is pregnant. However, she suffers an allergic reaction to the anti-venom and later miscarries the baby as her body cannot cope. Her former boyfriend, Derek, offers no sympathy when Susan contacts him. Elly goes on a date with Ned Willis (Ben Hall) and decides to play hard to get before accepting another date. However, Ned asks Madison Robinson (Sarah Ellen) out instead. Elly and Ned go out for a drink, and Ned admits that he is just friends with Madison, he just wanted to make Elly jealous. They kiss and agree to take their relationship slow. Elly finds a lock of blonde hair in Ned's wallet and assumes it belongs to Lauren Turner (Kate Kendall), who Ned had feelings for. Ned tells her that his former girlfriend gave it to him. Piper accuses Elly of giving her low marks for her assignments and when Elly later snaps at her, Piper makes a formal complaint against her. Susan later discovers that Elly has deliberately been marking Piper down. She tells Elly she will be placed on probation and should undertake counselling. Elly apologises to Piper, who accepts and agrees to stay in her class with Susan marking her assignments. Elly and Ned's relationship suffers when she sees him hugging his former girlfriend Regan Davis (Sabeena Manalis). Elly has a drink at the bar with a man, only to learn that this man is Jacka. Category:Neighbours characters Category:TV characters Category:Female Category:Antagonists